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With A-list stars more in-demand than ever — thanks in part to television — foreign sales agents are finding it harder and harder to package projects.

If many in the independent film business aren't thrilled about this year's Cannes Film Market, it is understandable. For months, foreign sales agents predicted Cannes would see a resurgence of high-profile, commercially viable, star-populated projects, the types of titles for which international distributors are willing to plunk down big money at the script stage.

Not only has the surge not happened, though, but also the state of affairs does not seem a fluke. "It's not a blip," says FilmNation CEO GlenBasner, who is bringing one of the bigger stars with a project at the market: AmyAdams in Story of Your Life. "There are fewer interesting packages, in part because directors and actors are working in so many different mediums," from television to the web.

Says RoegSutherland, co-head of CAA's Film Finance and Sales Group: "The leading financiers are quite savvy. They are focused on projects which have established or emerging directors that are matched with proven stars."

There are exceptions, including The Last Face, directed by SeanPenn and starring CharlizeTheron and JavierBardem, and a Mel Gibson project, Blood Father.

Sierra/Affinity CEO NickMeyer is circumspect about the perceived downturn: "I wish you could orchestrate a world in which the artists' availability was perfectly timed to the markets, but you can't."

Another challenge: There have been a series of big misses in the independent space, including Mortal Instruments: City of Bones and Vampire Academy, leaving many foreign buyers nervous about plunking down major money. And Ron Howard's Rush played a part in the demise of Exclusive Media, once one of the biggest players in the space.

As a result, budgets are shrinking. Says Rena Ronson, head of UTA Independent Film Group, "There's a scarcity of star-driven projects in the $15 million to $30 million range."

Some projects that are getting a major sales push at this year's market are already filming, or are in post, includingA Hologram for the King, starring Tom Hanks. (If footage looks good, expect it to be a big draw.)

As of press time, here are 15 of the buzzier titles heading to the Croisette (many are smaller propositions). Bigger projects still could be announced … but the clock is ticking.

Berg's documentary traces the life and career of iconic musician Janis Joplin.

Knock Knock

Director:EliRoth

Starring:KeanuReeves

Foreign Sales Company: Voltage

The psycho-thriller, starring Reeves as a married man visited by two mysterious beauties, is considered one of this year's most commercial Cannes market titles thanks to Roth's street cred and despite Reeves' box-office flop 47Ronin. On a $5 million budget, the film's risks are minimal.

Footage of the $80 million adaptation of the French children's book should spark interest among buyers.

Remember

Director:AtomEgoyan

Starring:ChristopherPlummer, MartinLandau, DeanNorris, BrunoGanz

Foreign Sales Company: IM Global

The thriller is described as "the darkest chapter of modern history colliding with a contemporary mission of revenge." Egoyan also has his thriller The Captive playing in competition at Cannes.

Story of Your Life

Director:DenisVilleneuve

Starring: AmyAdams

Foreign Sales Company: FilmNation

The project should spark interest. Produced by Shawn Levy's 21 Laps, Lava Bear and FilmNation, the sci-fi thriller stars Adams as an expert linguist who is asked to investigate when an alien spacecraft crash-lands on Earth.

The Sound and the Fury

Director: James Franco

Starring: Seth Rogen, Danny McBride

Foreign Sales Company: New Films International

The project is Franco's second stab at adapting William Faulkner's work. The director, who helmed 2013's As I Lay Dying, also stars in The Sound and the Fury, which centers on a wealthy family in the South in the early 20th century.